BBDO China transports Mr Bean to ancient China for global collaboration Snickers campaign

Launched at the end of August, a full month before its UK counterpart, in the China spot Mr Bean plays to a slightly different hungry behaviour, which sets up the concept of the “Fist of Hunger” that is used throughout the integrated campaign.

The advert is the latest instalment in the hugely popular “You’re Not You When You’re Hungry” campaign. Set in ancient China and filmed in the style of martial arts epics, Mr Bean is a Kung Fu Master who is not feeling his usual self until his hunger is relieved by a Snickers bar.

VIEW THE SPOT

The jointly developed and produced script is the first instance of full global collaboration across the Mars-BBDO network, and ensures that the work could run conscious of the cultural nuances of each market – for example great care was taken to stay true to the period and costume of classical kung fu fighters from Chinese “WuXia” stories like Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon.

 “This is the first time we have shared our global resources and used our agency’s global network in this manner. It’s a testament to the Snickers brand to be able to cooperate in this way to deliver a campaign of such scale, which neither market would have been able to achieve individually,”  Clarence Mak, President of Mars (Food) China and global leader on Snickers stated.

In the full China campaign, consumers are also treated to an elaborate backstory of Bean arriving in China to prepare for what he believes to be a Kung Fu movie deal, only to inadvertently discover his own fighting style, the “Fist of Hunger”.

Rowan Atkinson was brought to China to make his very first appearance as Mr Bean on the popular 80s Talkshow program, sending his many Chinese fans wild with excitement.

The campaign further reinforces and refreshes the well-known You’re Not You When You’re Hungry platform, and for the first time places the brotherhood situation into a fictional setting. Using such a globally recognized character and with the depth and scale of collaboration between these two huge markets, sets a precedent for developing future global copy for Mars and BBDO.

This latest commercial, Rowan Atkinson’s first ad appearance since the 1990s, builds on the success of the ‘Locker Room’ Snickers spot, which launched in 2012 starring Joan Collins and Stephanie Beacham. The Joan Collins ‘Diva’ ad was the most recognised ad in the UK in 2013[1].

[1] Source: Nielsen TV Brand Effect.

Media Buying: ZenithOptimedia